Warning: Unsafe to be an environmentalist in Mexico Appeal Denied for Imprisoned Forest Activists Press Conference Friday, July 20 in LA Washington, DC: The Sierra Club and Amnesty International called the decision of a Mexican judge to deny the appeal of two imprisoned environmentalists a severe blow to human rights, the environment and the Fox administration, which had publicly expressed its support of the environmentalists. The groups call on Mexican President Fox to release Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera immediately and unconditionally, or risk losing credibility in trying to build a strong civil society in Mexico. What: Press Conference to demand the immediate and unconditional release of jailed environmental defenders Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera in condemnation of their appeal decision. Who: Ubalda Cortes, wife of Rodolfo Montiel Ana Hernandez, lawyer for the environmentalists Spokesperson for U.S. Congresswoman Hilda Solis Linda Veazey, Amnesty International USA Alejandro Queral, Sierra Club Human Rights And Environment Program When: Friday, July 20, 10:00 AM Where: Mexican Consulate, 2401 W 6th St., Los Angeles

La Jornada/El Sur
July 19, 2001
Claudia Herrera Beltran
Translated by Tamara Domicelj and Craig Adair

Acapulco, Guerrero, July 18 - According to Rodolfo Montiel, interviewed via telephone from prison in Iguala, the upholding of his sentence and that of fellow campesino environmentalist, Teodoro Cabrera, demonstrates the role played by the military in their case. "I've refused to withdraw the accusation made against the soldiers by whom we were tortured" he stated. Julio Alonso Vera Marquez, actuary of the First Unitary Tribunal of the 21st Circuit based in Chilpancingo, has declared that the presiding magistrates found that the evidence of torture presented by lawyers from the Miguel Agustmn Pro Human Rights Center did not contain "sufficient proof." In response, Montiel asserts that their case offers the clearest possible evidence that justice does not exist in Guerrero, given that there has been no refutation of the fact that the crimes attributed to himself and Cabrera were fabricated during their torture at the hands of soldiers of the 40th Infantry Battalion, located in the city of Altamirano in the Tierra Caliente region.

Montiel Flores declared he was unsurprised by the upholding of their sentences given that a lawyer named Rodolfo, whose surname he cannot recall, from the federal Environment and Natural Resources Secretariat (SEMARNAT) advised him that, if he agreed to withdraw his accusations of torture by the military, he would be released from jail, permitted to resume his environmentalist activities and even provided with a salary by the SEMARNAT on the condition that he live outside the state of Guerrero.

"My response to this government representative was that we would consider the offer, but in reality we feel that to grant impunity to those who commit the crime of torture is tantamount to permitting the military to continue these illegal practices, principally targeted towards campesinos who are worst affected by the military's presence" stated Montiel.

He also referred to the detention last Saturday of Gerardo Cabrera Gonzalez in the Petatlan mountains by soldiers of the 19th Infantry Battalion based in the Costa Grande region. Rodolfo Montiel stated that these kinds of activities are common practice for the military within the region, where they have effectively replaced the police. It is about "demonstrating to society that it is they, the military, who rule in the Sierra." Montiel stated that he knows Gerardo Cabrera and that "he is a person who lives by honest means and is recognized throughout the region as a decent man."

In closing, the environmentalist, who has received extensive national and international recognition for his struggle to conserve local forests, stated that he remains unwavering in his convictions and in his support for the continuing efforts of his fellow activists in the Sierra Madre del Sur region.

Case to be submitted to the IHRC

After the ruling by the tribunal in Chilpancingo upholding incarceration of the two campesinos, the defense for the environmental prisoners, Rodolfo Montiel and Teodoro Cabrera, announced its plans to submit the case to the Inter-American Human Rights Commission. In Mexico, says the defense, there is "no chance" for justice.

The president of the Miguel Agustmn Pro Juarez Human Rights Center, Edgar Cortez, indicated that the case might also become the first Mexican complaint to be filed to the Inter-American Human Rights Court. Because of their mandatory nature, the Court's rulings carry more weight than those handed down by the Commission.

Cortez stated that the promises made by President Fox to the Secretary General of Amnesty International, Pierre Sani, "have not been fulfilled" given that the President could have insisted that the charges against the environmentalists be dropped.

Cortez and attorney, Jorge Fernandez, explained in a press conference that the First Unitary Tribunal of the 21st Circuit of Chilpancingo, which upheld the sentences, ignored evidence that demonstrates that Cabrera and Montiel's supposed confessions were obtained under torture.

Last Tuesday the aforementioned tribunal upheld the prison sentences of six years, eight months and ten years for Montiel and Cabrera, respectively. The environmentalists were accused of arms possession and marijuana cultivation by a military agent of the Public Ministry and later a federal agent, but according to human rights workers, they are not guilty of these crimes. Instead, their imprisonment is owed to their fight against deforestation in the state of Guerrero.

Fernandez points out that the acting tribunal in Chilpancingo was obliged to consider existing evidence regarding the certificate of torture issued by expert medical witnesses, Morris Tidball and Christian Tramsen, of Doctors for Human Rights in Denmark - an organization endorsed by the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs.

Cortez complained that, far from deterring arbitrary acts by the authorities and protecting the human rights of the victims, the judicial system has become an institution which legitimizes offenses committed against the population.

Anomalies in the medical ruling

Fernandez explained the "irregularities" in the tribunal's ruling. Most significantly, it did not take into account the medical testimonies submitted by the defense, yet did consider the medical certificates issued by the military personnel who detained the campesinos as well as by inexperienced medical witnesses for the prosecution who carried out their evaluations in under five minutes.

He stated that the physical ailments suffered by the prisoners since their torture were also not considered as the tribunal attributed these to another cause and, additionally, that the wrist and ankle scars exhibited by both men were found only to indicate that "justified" measures had been taken "to prevent their escape."

The defense also criticized the current federal Attorney General, Macedo de la Concha, who was the Military Justice Attorney at the time of the environmentalists' detention and torture by members of the 40th Battalion, for his systematic call for the original charges to be upheld.

The defense stated that members of Amnesty International in the USA are planning a demonstration outside the Mexican Consulate in Los Angeles to protest the sentence against the environmentalists.

Meanwhile, in a telephone interview, Mari-Claire Acosta, Mexico's Special Ambassador for Human Rights, declared her indignation at the magisterial ruling and stated that it is disheartening that certain members of the Mexican judiciary remain resistant to change and will not accept evidence demonstrating the use of torture to obtain declarations. She considered the case indicative of problems within the Guerrero state government "relating to significant vested interests and an authoritarian conception of justice which, unfortunately, remains very deeply-rooted in this country."